If Jason Martin has learned anything from re-starting the action with corner kicks over the past 10 years, it's to be receptive to being critiqued.
Martin was open-minded to constructive criticism thrown his way Wednesday, made an adjustment and suddenly was lavished with more praise than he could have ever imagined.
Martin delivered the winning goal on a corner kick in Ozark's 2-1 double-overtime victory against Nixa in a Class 4 District 5 semifinal.
His perfectly-placed kick in front of the Tigers' goal crossed the goal line as it hit Eagles defender Seth Weatherfield.
At all levels he has played, it's Martin's first goal ever on a corner kick.
"No better time for it than with six minutes left in double overtime," Ozark goalkeeper Trevor Carlton said.
The outcome was better than Martin could have expected. But he was very much in his element.
"I love the position," Martin said of delivering the corner kick. "I feel like for someone to step up and take on that role, they need to have the confidence to take on criticism. That's why I feel like I've stayed in that role."
Martin wasn't rattled upon hearing Ozark coach Zack Owens implore him to improve on his corner kicks. For most of Wednesday's thriller, Martin's corner kicks were booted too high and over teammates in front of the Tigers' goal.
"I heard (Owens) from the sideline yelling, 'Hey, make it better,'" Martin said. "I focused to make sure (the kick) was right in front of the goal for my teammates and it went in. I had good placement tonight. But I had to make sure I wasn't hitting it as hard. When I took a little bit of the power off, it was perfect. Right in front of the goal, it was the perfect opportunity for our team to score. It was right in front of the goal and then it even curved in."
"He wears his emotions on his sleeve, sometimes more than we need him to," Owens said. "But he's such a coachable player. He can get dialed back in for those kind of moments because in the end he understands it's 'We before me.'
"He struggled putting in corners in the first half, but got better as we went along," Owens added. "We worked on set pieces for probably 45 minutes at practice Tuesday. Guess what, it transitioned into the match and we're the victors from it."
Martin never would have dreamed of being the match's hero. As Owens said, he's selfless and content with setting teammates up for success.
"I enjoy being able to set up teammates for goals, that's my job," Martin said. "As a center-mid, I distribute the ball to help other people score to help the team."
With a horde of players from both teams in front of the goal as the ball neared the goal line, it was difficult for players, coaches and fans to have a clear view of the play.
Opinions vary on the final call and it will be remembered as a controversial finish.
For the Tigers, it was a pleasant surprise.
"I saw the ball going in, then I thought they got it out," Martin said. "I thought it stayed on the line. When the ref called it in, I was happy and surprised."
"From back here where I am, I can't tell what's happening, especially on those low grounders," Carlton said. "When the flag went up, I thought, 'Oh, off-sides, let's keep going.' But I guess the ball crossed the line."
"We teach the kids if they are playing a zone defense on corners, to take a step out because of that exact situation," Owens said. "It's rare, but sometimes it bites you. Luckily for us, it got them that time."
"I saw the ball going back and saw the (Nixa defender) back up into the goal," Ozark midfielder Phin Scott said. "I think that's why it went in, he tried to back up and hit it out."
The teams were scoreless in the first half. It felt like a win for Ozark, considering Nixa dominated possession of the ball.
A shot attempt by the Eagles' Corey Kemp rocketed off a goal post.
"We had to regroup because they were on us the whole first half," Scott said. "It was stressful. A few times we made mistakes and that scared me. But our defense held them down. We adjusted, we were able to find their weaknesses and target them."
"It was hard for us to get possessions," Martin said. "We had to make sure they weren't winning the 50-50s. Once we dialed it in, it was a back and forth game."
"We were on our heels at the start," Owens said. "They had such an impressive attack. But we weathered the storm."
Scott broke the scoreless tie with a goal :24 into the second half.
"I've been shooting it well lately, so I have more confidence in myself and felt like I could hit that shot," Scott said. I felt amazing as soon as I hit it. I knew it was going to go in the corner."
Caeden Cloud answered seven minutes later with what proved to be Nixa's only goal.
Carlton and Nixa 'keeper Logan Elmer responded to the pressure of the proceedings with clutch performances. Both stopped a point-blank shot attempt in the second half.
"It was a hectic game," Carlton said. "They never had beat us, so I knew they were going to drive, drive and drive with everything they had and pressure us until the whistle blew."
In such a competitive contest, Owens wasn't surprised to see the 'keepers shine.
"In big games like this, your 'keeper has got to come up big," he said. "They have to make one or two great saves in order for you to have a chance. Both 'keepers did that."
Carlton and Elmer are friendly foes and even trained together over the summer.
"Because we know each other, I knew I was going to feel bad if they lost and he was going to feel bad if we lost," Carlton said. "With that friendship, we didn't want to lose to each other. I'm not going to lie, though, I didn't want to end it here against them."
In the other semifinal, Kickapoo downed Neosho 6-2.
Ozark (23-7) and Kickapoo (24-2) will meet in the final at 2 p.m. Saturday.
